“Italy is endangering the security of its military and commercial ships by seizing tactical command of the EU Aspides mission in the Red Sea.” Nasr al-Din Amer, deputy head of the Media Authority of the Yemeni Houthi rebels who caused a crisis in international trade, stated this in an interview with Adnkronos. The “Houthis” will hit ships that attack our country or obstruct the decision to prevent Israeli ships from crossing the Red Sea. “This should be obvious,” he explained.
According to Amer, one of the ‘media faces’ of the Houthis, the mission will directly drag Italy into a “direct conflict”.
“We strongly do not advise Italy to participate in this mission because it is based on false and inaccurate information that poses a danger to navigation – instead there is no threat to navigation in general, insists the Houthi defender, but only because of their aggression against Yemen.” “For Israeli, American and British ships transiting through the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandeb, the Sea of Oman and the Gulf of Aden.”
What is the Aspides mission and why is Italy on the front lines?
It is the name of the Italian-led naval mission in which Germany, France and Italy plan to defend themselves against attacks by Yemeni rebels on cargo ships in the region. The mission does not have any offensive missions, only “defensive” missions; The aim is to guarantee the proper functioning of international trade, but the use of force to respond to any Houthi attack is also clearly envisaged.
The Aspides mission (the Greek word for ‘shield’) in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden will need to be approved at the European Council of Foreign Ministers, scheduled for February 19. According to EU High Representative Josep Borrell’s intention, this will be a purely defensive shield aimed at protecting ships from attacks by Houthi militias in Yemen. “Our aim is not any attack, only defence. We do not intend to carry out any operations on land, we only want to protect navigation at sea,” Borrell said.
Tajani: “We will not be afraid of threats”
And the Italian government’s response to the threats is coming. “To prevent the ports of Trieste, Taranto, Brindisi, Gioia Tauro and Genoa from suffering from Houthi violence, Italy took the lead in sending a European military mission to defend maritime traffic in the Red Sea region. “We will not intimidate our ships,” Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said today, Saturday, February 10. made the statement.
“We hope that we can reach a positive solution in that region soon, even if it is not easy, we can reach peace and thus neutralize what is happening in Yemen, where the Houthi rebels attack commercial ships passing through the Red Sea,” Tajani continued, underlining that: “Our Naval Forces will destroy our commercial ships.” will defend it because we are a country where 40% of GDP depends on exports and we cannot afford that the impossibility of exporting in this region will damage our ports and businesses.
Source: Today IT
Karen Clayton is a seasoned journalist and author at The Nation Update, with a focus on world news and current events. She has a background in international relations, which gives her a deep understanding of the political, economic and social factors that shape the global landscape. She writes about a wide range of topics, including conflicts, political upheavals, and economic trends, as well as humanitarian crisis and human rights issues.
